1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of footwear, and more particularly to an improved footwear article for applying a predetermined amount of support to the wearer which continually adjusts to changes in the wearer""s foot without manual intervention.
2. Description of Related Art
Throughout history, footwear has been sought after that provide protection and support for a wearer""s foot, while at the same time is comfortable and simple to wear and secure. Currently, a popular fastening means for securing footwear to the wearer""s foot is by using a shoelace and eyelet combination, wherein a lace is threaded through eyelets that are positioned on a footwear article so as to lie either side of a shoe tongue and along opposing eyelet flaps. The laces are first laced through the eyelets in a crossway pattern, alternating from one eyelet flap to the other and then back again. After lacing, the footwear article is normally tightened comfortably to provide support and then the laces are tied. While this is an adequate method of securing footwear, when one string breaks a new one is needed. Moreover, the laces must be periodically loosened and tightened to maintain the desired support while remaining comfortable.
Footwear comes in a variety of styles including low-quarter, mid-quarter, high-quarter, high-top and boot. Generally, the higher the footwear article fits on the wearer""s ankle, the more support afforded to the wearer by the article. Thus, persons desiring more support naturally gravitate toward mid-quarter, high-quarter, high-top and boot type footwear. Also, as the height of the footwear article increase, so does the amount of fasteners needed to secure the article on the wearer""s foot. It then follows that persons needing more foot support must devote a significant amount of time for securing the article with the accompanying fastening means.
A particular problem inherent with prior art fasteners is that they need periodic attention in order to maintain the support, fit and comfort to the wearer. As the day progresses, a wearer""s foot goes through successive stages of swelling and contraction which necessitate adjusting footwear for support and comfort. As the human foot becomes uncomfortable, overheated or stressed from long periods of standing or walking, the capillaries carrying blood to and from the feet become constricted and the blood flow to the foot is diminished, usually due to the retention of fluid. With the diminished blood flow, the foot retains even more fluid causing the capillaries to constrict even further until the source of the discomfort is alleviated. Normally, the best cure for foot swelling is the removal of the offending footwear, followed by elevating the wearer""s feet. However, in the normal rigger of an everyday life it is virtually impossible to take a time-out for pediatric care, much less elevating ones bare feet for a period of time. Thus, those who suffer from foot discomfort are left with the alternative of loosening the footwear fasteners at the onset of discomfort and then, once the period of discomfort abates, re-securing the fasteners to provide the necessary support.
As it happens however, persons with a particular need for foot support are often the same persons who experience extreme bouts of foot swelling necessitating continual adjustments to the footwear fasteners. In a cruel twist, these persons are also likely to experience difficulties with footwear fasteners. For example, a pregnant woman may require the added support provided by a mid-quarter, high-quarter or high-top shoe due to the increased weight resulting from the pregnancy. Foot swelling that often accompanies a pregnancy causes the pregnant woman additional foot discomfort that is only remedied by intermittently loosening and then re-securing as the footwear fasteners corresponding with the alternating periods of foot swelling and foot contracting passes, and then re-securing. A pregnant woman""s condition further exacerbates maintaining the proper mix of footwear support, fit and comfort because of the difficulty in stooping and bending necessary for adjusting the fasteners brought about by the pregnancy. Thus, a pregnant woman is often left with the choices of risking foot and ankle injury from footwear that is comfortable but does not provide any meaningful support, and being tormented with the incessant bending necessary to keep fasteners on supportive footwear adjusted to the continual cycles of foot swelling and foot contracting. Often a pregnant woman will opt for the most convenient footwear and disregard the danger of foot and ankle injury, all too frequently resulting in tragic consequences.
The problem described above is typical of numerous diseases, conditions and ailments such as diabetes, osteoporosis (and other brittle bone syndromes) and obesity to mention a few. The prior art is silent on providing a fastener that maintains foot support, while simultaneously allowing of ease of adjustment. These fasteners are relegated to include zippers, straps with buckle, hook or snap fasteners, and hook and loop fasteners (Velcro, a trademark of Velcro Industries B. V.). Although these appliances often reduce the amount of time and effort necessary for adjusting footwear, over the lace and eyelet combination, the wearer must still be content with periodically adjusting the footwear article in an effort to maintain the optimal combination of support, fit and comfort.
The present invention relates to a continual comfort adjusting fastener for a footwear article and provides an alternative to fasteners that necessitate periodic attention by the wearer in order to maintain a proper combination of support, fit and comfort by utilizing spring mechanisms to induce a predetermined amount of tension between opposing eye flaps of the footwear article. In contrast with prior art laces and straps, the spring mechanism provide needed support but also flexes in response to foot swelling, thus reducing or eliminating foot discomfort due to tightness about the foot. Moreover, because the spring mechanisms are independent of one another, the support offered by footwear incorporating the present invention can easily be tailored to an individual wearer""s particular support requirement and may be varied along the extent of the foot. Footwear manufacturers benefit from the present invention due to the extremely developed nature of elastics and the ready supply of component springs, available in a wide variety of tensions, for production. The present invention bypasses the need to tie shoes, and with respect to one embodiment is similar to a low leather step-in shoe such as a loafer in that the spring assembly is never adjusted, even during putting on or taking off the footwear. Thus it is also easier for young children, disabled and infirm persons who can not tie their own shoes.
In accordance with various exemplary embodiments of the present invention, the spring mechanism portion of the spring assembly that provides constant tension between eye flaps may be one of a tension spring, compression spring and torsion spring. The spring assembly is comprised substantially the spring mechanism and thereby may be fastened directly to eyelets in the footwear article, or in accordance other exemplary embodiments, the spring assembly is further comprised of locking eyelets which themselves are attached to the eye flap of the footwear article via rivets, thus replacing the eyelets. With respect to embodiment that make use of eyelets in the footwear eye flap, the attachment means for the spring mechanism is a simple xe2x80x9cJxe2x80x9d hook and thereby may be hooked into existing eyelets, alternatively the J hook attachment might be fastened to the aforementioned locking eyelets. The J hook attachment is open ended, thereby allowing the spring mechanism to be easily disconnected from the corresponding eyelet at any time for ease of entry into the footwear article and further, the J hook attachment configuration is compatible with all types of spring mechanisms.
In accordance with another exemplary embodiment the spring attachment means is fashioned into a more closed loop configuration constituting a safety catch which cooperates with a locking eyelet, thus preventing accidental disconnects or the sharp wire ends from protruding into the shoe cavity, as might be possible in the case of the J hook. With respect to further improvements, the safety catch may be disposed internally within the spring coils of the tension spring mechanism and provide a semi-permanent connection or instead the locking eyelet may be connected to the first coil of a tension spring and the safety catch encompasses and secures the locking eyelet thereon, also semi-permanently.
The invention is also aesthetically pleasing since the spring mechanism, and in fact the spring assembly itself, can be metallically plated with shiny metals or painted in different colors which match or contrast the color of the footwear article.